Elliot Turiel, PhD - US grants

The proposed research is aimed at a further understanding, in children and adolescents, of the relations between thought and actions in practical situations involving interactions with other persons. The settings for the research is elementary and junior high school classrooms and playgrounds, which provide a concrete context for examining a range of social behaviors. The study will focus on judgments and behaviors pertaining to rules, authority-relations, social conventions, and moral issues. Three methods of assessment are to be used. The starting-point of the study is detailed and systematic observations of naturally-occurring interactions among individuals (children and adults) in the school setting. Second assessments will be made of children's immediate judgments about the actual events in which they participated. Third, assessments will be made of reflective judgments regarding social interactions, school rules and authority-relations. The general aim of the research is to extend knowledge regarding patterns of social behavior and how they are related to social reasoning. The accomplishment of this aim would contribute to the psychology of cognitive development, as it relates to social and moral behaviors.

The proposed project is a continuation of a currently funded project on social judgments and action. The current project was aimed at furthering understandings of children's thought and actions in practical situations involving interactions with other persons. The research, which was conducted in various settings within elementary and junior high schools, focuses on judgments and behaviors pertaining to rules, authority relations, social conventions and moral issues. The proposed study extends that research to include the investigations of the influences of social experience on children's judgments and actions. This will be accomplished by studying transitional periods involving marked changes in children's social environments. Assessments are to be made as children enter elementary school (first grade), junior high school (seventh grade), and high school (ninth grade). Fourth graders will also be included to ascertain judgments and behavior in middle adulthood. A follow-up assessment will be made approximately six months later. The methods developed in the current study are well-suited for the proposed extensions. One method involves systematic observations of naturally-occurring interactions in the school setting. Assessments will also be made of children's immediate judgments about the actual events in which they participated, as well as their reflective judgments about comparable issues. The general aim of the research is to extend knowledge regarding the interactions among social experiences, behaviors, and reasoning. The research would also contribute more generally to the psychology of cognitive and social development.

The proposed research is aimed at furthering our understanding of children's and young adolescents' concepts of human sexuality. Thinking about biological aspects of sexuality (e.g., reproduction, contraception) and social aspects of sexuality (e.g., moral and cultural norms, love, marriage) will be investigated. Two methods of assessment will be used: sorting and identification tasks to assess basic biological concepts (e.g., production and reproduction of animate and inanimate objects), and a series of structured questions and probes aimed at assessing how children and adolescents coordinate social and biological knowledge. In addition, the mothers of these subjects will be interviewed about the information they believe they have conveyed to their children about these topics, along with their views regarding what sort of information is appropriate for children at different ages. The accomplishment of these aims would contribute information essential for informed and effective educational efforts towards the prevention of AIDS by elucidating cognitive and social components of the development of sexual knowledge.